Nebula Fall Brown Bag

November 10, 2014

Thanks to those who joined us for the Nebula Fall Brown Bag!  Brian Arkills was there; Brian is the new Service Manager, responsible for managing the service and its quality (Rebecca still manages the team that delivers the service).  Brian talked about:

  • Better communications to customers for more timely information, including semi-annual newsletters.
  • Migration to NETID logins — this is needed to deploy better back-end tools.  It will also allow for multi-factor authentication for those clients that need more security.  We are happy to help, no charge; let us know when you are ready.
  • Windows 10 is coming – we are participating in early adopter program .

Tobin Wood talked about the latest “ransomware” incidents, where a malicious program encrypts files and then demands money for the encryption key.  This has affected H: and I: drive files and prevents anyone from accessing them.  You can get infected by clicking on attachments, or by going to an infected web site, aka “drive-by”.

  • Contact us asap if you suspect an infection.
  • If your area has an infection, copy your files to your desktop before working on them.
  • The fix:  recover and restore encrypted folders from snapshots — this overwrites everything in the existing folder.

File service quotas are scheduled for July 1, 2015.  We’re contacting H: drive users first; moving files to Google Drive or the U: Drive are good options.  Please examine what you’re storing on H: and I: and review the guidelines at the bottom of the “Using Your Computer” page.  Backups, non-work related media files, programs and archived files are all good candidates for removal.

Questions — our favorite part of the meeting!

  1. What happened to Integratum, the web access tool?
    It is old technology and incompatible with newer security protocols.  Alternatives include Google Drive, Microsoft One Drive, and connecting to a work computer via Remote Desktop.
  2. When should I use the VPN?
    When you’re on a public network like a coffeeshop, library or airport, we recommend you connect via the VPN to encrypt your network traffic.
  3. How can I make my login default to NETID?
    We can do that; just send us a note.
  4. Why isn’t Adobe Reader on the new images?
    Adobe’s latest licensing does not allow us to distribute it via an image. The link you see in a newly imaged computer is to download the Reader software.
  5. The old Nebula Support Request icon keeps coming back. (And why do we have a new NSR?)
    We are working on that; send us a note if you keep seeing it.  The NSR is handy when you’re having email problems; it sends us a trouble report.
  6. Can deletions from my I: drive be restored?
    Only from snapshots.
  7. How do we ensure that emails are deleted?
    Look into the Recover Deleted Items information — there’s another Delete option there.